PUPILS, staff and guests at Holy Family Catholic School's presentation evening were told that education is about more than just data and results.

Guest of honour and ex-Holy Family head teacher Lawrence Bentley addressed the occasion, which was held to reward members of the former year 11 group who completed their GCSES last summer.

Mr Bentley left Holy Family during the summer to take the helm at the new combined St Bede's and St Joseph's School, in Bradford.

He pointed out that students from this year group were the first he had welcomed to Holy Family as prospective pupils during a previous school open evening.

Reporting on the presentation evening, a spokesman for the school added: "Mr Bentley lamented the education world being subsumed by numbers, data and results.

"He also commented on the famous people who had been rejected as 'useless' by their teachers and the world at large, only to go on to achieve great things, Einstein and Beethoven to name but two.

"He explained that it is not just intelligence that matters but adaptability and memories, pointing out that school provides an important part of our life memories.

"Mr Bentley shared some memories of his own school days, and concluded that school and life itself is about love, care and compassion."

The spokesman said the evening was a chance for teachers to catch up on news from those former students who had moved onto other colleges or into employment over the summer holidays.

However, most of the former year 11 group are now members of the Holy Family Sixth Form.

The awards evening was presided over by Samuel Emmett and Juliet Brown – Holy Family head boy and head girl respectively – who welcomed guests and helped to keep the event on track.

Special awards for attainment went to Mehr-un-Nisa Baig and Jack Coppen

Awards for progress: Patrycja Maziarz and Jonathan Meli

Awards for service to school: Jack Lewis

Stephanie Sutcliffe Memorial Award: Aaron Robertson

Chaplaincy Award: Emily Starr

Inclusion Award: Nico Marchini

DSP Inclusion Award: Joe Gill

Awards were also presented for each subject

English Language: Azba Wahid, English Literature: Paige Copperwaite, Mathematics: Zain Mahmood, Science GCSE: Sarah Szczur, Science BTEC: Ikra Pervez, Religious Education: Lucy Middleton,

Modern Foreign Language – French: Azba Wahid, Modern Foreign Language – German: Dominic Smith, Modern Foreign Language – Japanese: Sarah Szczur, Modern Foreign Language – Spanish: Chloe Mellor, Performing Arts – Art: Patrycia Marziarz, Performing Arts – Drama: Aamir Hussain, Performing Arts – Music: Kira Sharples, Physical Education: Emily Starr, Geography: Jonathan Meli, History: Lewis Groves, Technology Design: Anita Bojarska, Business: Beynish Hussain, Creative Media: Jack Narey, ICT: Jack Lewis, Psychology: Jack Drewitt, Applied Learning: Thomas Smith.